Narrowband

After almost a decade of taking pictures of space with a DSLR camera, I have come to the realization that a DSLR Ha filter is the quite possibly the most important astrophotography filter in your kit. Traditional light pollution filters designed to help you photograph deep sky objects in broadband (true-color) are useful, but a hydrogen-alpha filter makes the single greatest impact on your astrophotography overall. Beginners often ask me which narrowband filter (line filter) I recommend to buy first, and it's always an Ha (or "Hα") filter. H-alpha is a specific deep-red visible spectral li…

With the aid of an Astronomik 12nm Ha filter, I can capture deep-sky images more often than ever before. With both the Canon EOS clip-in version for my DSLR and the 2" CCD round mounted version for the my dedicated astronomy camera, I collect photons in every moon phase. Despite the bright 80% illuminated moon this past Saturday night, I was able to capture some incredible deep sky photos of 2 deep sky emission nebula targets from my backyard in the city. Using my 102mm refractor telescopes, I collected isolated wavelengths of light on the Wizard Nebula in the constellation Cepheus, and Bub…

Narrowband imaging with a color camera is not only possible, but I have found it to be an excellent way of adding detail and structure to my astrophotography images. If you currently own a one-shot-color camera or DSLR, I highly recommend trying some narrowband filters with it such as Ha (Hydrogen-alpha). Ideally, you'll use a monochrome astronomy camera for narrowband (and LRGB) images, yet owners of color cameras can still tap into the benefits of narrowband filters before taking the big leap to mono. An example scenario is someone with a one-shot-color cooled astronomy camera such as…